President Donald Trump described Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian military commander killed by US forces in 2020, as a “great leader” and a “mad genius” during an appearance at the Future Investment Initiative amid the US-Iran war.
Speaking at the Saudi-operated event, the 47th President of the United States recalled the drone strike he ordered near Baghdad International Airport. While calling Soleimani a “vicious, horrible human being,” Trump emphasized the general’s influence and strategic capability.
He stated, “It was a big moment, also in my first administration, when I took out Soleimani. And a lot of people think that might have been the biggest thing of all, because he was a mad genius.”
Trump, 79, added, “He was a vicious, horrible human being, but he was a great general and a great leader—if you define a leader in a certain way—a very powerful leader,”
He then noted that he believed Iran’s own leadership was privately relieved by the general’s death due to his significant power.
Trump on Iran:
Qasem Soleimani was so powerful that I think the leadership of Iran was extremely happy when I took him out.
Nobody will ask them about it because they are not here either. pic.twitter.com/ml8Q0LLHqY
— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 27, 2026
The remarks come amid a war between the US, Israel, and Iran. According to reports, US and Israeli operations have killed approximately 40 top Iranian officials over the past month.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency reports at least 1,492 Iranian civilian deaths. Additionally, more than 1,110 people have been killed in Lebanon, and 13 US service members have died in the recent hostilities, as per the New York Times.
Absolute humiliation for the Western alliance. Trump publicly trashes NATO as a useless paper tiger and exposes that the UK completely abandoned the US out of fear. The American empire is totally isolated and its allies are refusing to get dragged into his disastrous wars. pic.twitter.com/n5Q50ot6Xa
— Furkan Gözükara (@FurkanGozukara) March 26, 2026
Furthermore, President Trump criticized NATO allies, labelling the alliance a “paper tiger” and expressing deep frustration over its response to the ongoing war with Iran.
Speaking at the business conference, Trump said he was “very disappointed” with the lack of support from member nations.
He noted, “I’ve always said NATO is a paper tiger. And I always said we help NATO, but they’ll never help us.”
The president’s comments come just a day after he delayed planned strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure to allow more time for peace talks.
